The Power of a Crown of Thorns (Mark 15:1–20)

Introduction

Attention

Power is not always obvious. Power refers to your authority to act or to control something. We have preconceived notions of what it means to have power, to be in control. When we are speaking about power, we are really speaking about control. We may not be able to relate to power, but we can relate to control, because so often we want control over the things in our life.

But control comes from authority. For instance, you try to control your kids through the authority you have as a parent. Sooner or later you find out in life that your control is weak, especially as the kids get older, because our authority is limited. Life becomes more about letting go of trying to have control and more about giving our lives over to the authority, power, and control of God through faith in Jesus.

When you think of control, you often think of government. I was watching an interaction this week through a YouTube video between politicians in a government committee meetings. In this committee meeting, there was the current chair of the committee, who is now a Republican, and a previous chair of a committee, who was a Democrat. They were arguing over an amendment to the resolution before the committee. The Republican chair had overruled the amendment. The Democrat, the former chairman, stated how absurd the ruling was, that the the amendment was perfectly in line, and there was no reason to overrule it. He said it was absurd. The Republican chair than said he had to sit under plenty of absurd rulings from the Democrat.

These are the voices in power who are claiming to speak for the American people. Apparently, the American people send their politicians to Washington to call each other absurd. Is this power? If feels like the minute we have authority, we use our power, our authority, to beat each other up.

But when Jesus came, he flipped all of our preconceived notions of power on its head. The Bible said that the Messiah would be a king. Yet Jesus, the Messiah, didn’t take on a gold, lavish throne wearing a gold crown, like other human kings. The Son of God, the divine king, took on the throne of a cross wearing a crown of thorns. Jesus, the true King, shows us his power through a crown of thorns.

How does a crown of thorns show us his power? What can we learn about control by looking at Jesus? We’ll look at the events around this in Mark 15:1-20 (pew Bible, page 904).

Context

In the context here, Jesus has faced the Sanhedrin, where Jesus states that he is the Messiah, in Mark 14:62 “62 “I am,” said Jesus, “and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming with the clouds of heaven.”” Mark then shifts to Peter, who denies Jesus, which Jesus had prophesied. This brings us to Mark 15, where Jesus will leave the Sanhedrin and see Pilate.

Scripture Reading

Mark 15:1–20 CSB

1 As soon as it was morning, having held a meeting with the elders, scribes, and the whole Sanhedrin, the chief priests tied Jesus up, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate. 2 So Pilate asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” He answered him, “You say so.” 3 And the chief priests accused him of many things. 4 Pilate questioned him again, “Aren’t you going to answer? Look how many things they are accusing you of!” 5 But Jesus still did not answer, and so Pilate was amazed. 6 At the festival Pilate used to release for the people a prisoner whom they requested. 7 There was one named Barabbas, who was in prison with rebels who had committed murder during the rebellion. 8 The crowd came up and began to ask Pilate to do for them as was his custom. 9 Pilate answered them, “Do you want me to release the king of the Jews for you?” 10 For he knew it was because of envy that the chief priests had handed him over. 11 But the chief priests stirred up the crowd so that he would release Barabbas to them instead. 12 Pilate asked them again, “Then what do you want me to do with the one you call the king of the Jews?” 13 Again they shouted, “Crucify him!” 14 Pilate said to them, “Why? What has he done wrong?” But they shouted all the more, “Crucify him!” 15 Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them; and after having Jesus flogged, he handed him over to be crucified. 16 The soldiers led him away into the palace (that is, the governor’s residence) and called the whole company together. 17 They dressed him in a purple robe, twisted together a crown of thorns, and put it on him. 18 And they began to salute him, “Hail, king of the Jews!” 19 They were hitting him on the head with a stick and spitting on him. Getting down on their knees, they were paying him homage. 20 After they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple robe and put his clothes on him. They led him out to crucify him.

Pray

In Mark 15:1-20, we are getting into the context of Roman power. The Sanhedrin are quite craftily using the Romans and their power to their advantage.

Jesus had grown quite a following. We are three years into his ministry. Jesus has had a triumphal entry into Jerusalem. If they were worried before, they are now in a state of panic. We see in John 12:19

John 12:19 CSB

19 Then the Pharisees said to one another, “You see? You’ve accomplished nothing. Look, the world has gone after him!”

after the triumphal entry, the Pharisees say to one another, “You see? You’ve accomplished nothing. Look, the world has gone after him!” So what were they to do?

Technically, the Jews did not have the power of capital punishment. The Romans had stripped it away from them. Now, the Jews did use capital punishment at some points. We see in John 8 that they attempted to stone a woman caught in adultery, and then in Acts 7, they actually stone Stephen, known as the first Christian martyr. But both of these figures were more minor figures. Their death wouldn’t cause such an upheaval in Jerusalem that it would be a threat to Rome. In both of these cases, the Romans might look away.

But the Jewish leaders were stressed with Jesus. He was something different. They said the whole world was going after him. The people of Israel were coming to Jesus, which was a threat to the Jewish leaders. It was time to put their foot down.

So they devised a scheme. They got Judas to betray Jesus. Now, they would abide by Roman law and present Jesus to the Romans for capital punishment. Now, it got tricky. The real charge of the Jews against Jesus was blasphemy, because he, a man, was claiming to be the Son of God, God in the flesh. We see this in Mark 14:63-64:

Mark 14:63–64 CSB

63 Then the high priest tore his robes and said, “Why do we still need witnesses? 64 You have heard the blasphemy. What is your decision?” They all condemned him as deserving death.

So the charge from the Sanhedrin is blasphemy, and it’s for this charge of blasphemy that they want to condemn Jesus as deserving death.

However, the Romans don’t necessarily care about their religious squabble. They don’t care about Jewish religion. But they would care if someone was directly confronting Roman power.

Jesus was a threat to Jewish power, but the Jews had to prove that he was a threat to Roman power. How did they do this? They did that through Jesus’ claim of being the Messiah.

The Bible prophesied that the Messiah would be a king. This comes from several passages in the Hebrew Scriptures. In 2 Samuel 7:12-16, God makes a covenant with David where God promises that David’s house and kingdom will endure forever. God will bring someone from David lineage who will have an eternal kingdom.

In Isaiah 9:6-7, we see the Messiah with a kingly or governmental authority:

Isaiah 9:6–7 CSB

6 For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on his shoulders. He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. 7 The dominion will be vast, and its prosperity will never end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from now on and forever. The zeal of the Lord of Armies will accomplish this.

So here’s this promise to Israel that the Messiah will be a king with a kingdom. In a twisted way, the Jewish leaders will use God’s Word to unjustly prosecute and kill an innocent man. They hand Jesus over to Pilate for the charge of being a king, a crime worthy of capital punishment in Rome.

The way Rome is set up, Judea is a province of Rome, and each province is ruled by a type of governor. The governor of Judea is mentioned in the Gospels, Pontius Pilate, who held the position of governor of the Roman province of Judea from AD 26 to 36. The governor had broad powers. He had the authority to maintain law and order, collect taxes, and oversee legal matters, especially those involving capital punishment.

Now, while the charge of blasphemy didn’t matter much to the Romans, they didn’t care about religious squabbles, the charge of claiming to be a king of a province of Rome was definitely a charge worthy of capital punishment. It was a political crime rather than a religious one.

If the Jews could get the Romans to follow through on capital punishment, the Jewish leaders would have the added benefit of killing Jesus not by their own hands, and could say that the Romans did it. Plus, from a Jewish perspective, they could make a case against Jesus being the Messiah, because Roman capital punishment was done on a wooden cross, a tree. In Deuteronomy 21:23, the law said that anyone hung on a tree was under God’s curse. So if Jesus was hung on a cross, on a tree, then he was cursed by God, and how could he then be the Messiah? That would cover any potential blow back they might receive from his Jewish followers.

So they go forward with this scheme and bring Jesus to the Roman governor, Pontius Pilot. What we are really seeing in Mark 15:1-20 in power: human power versus the power of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I want us to see Jesus’ power here in a couple of ways.

First,

Jesus shows his power in his submission to God’s will.

The Lord is taken to Pilot and faces the power of human authority. There is a description of a short back and forth, the only thing Mark mentions that Jesus says in his time in front of the Roman governor. In fact, what stands out to Pilot is not what Jesus says, but his lack of saying anything.

Look at Mark 15:2:

Mark 15:2 CSB

2 So Pilate asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” He answered him, “You say so.”

Even in this short statement from Jesus, it’s interesting, isn’t it? Jesus says, “You say so.” Now, why does Jesus answer this way? It’s kind of affirmation, and yet it’s not. He affirms, “I am the king of the Jews,” but not in the way that you think. He gives a yes, but with a qualification. He says, “Yes, people are calling me this, but the way you understand kingship is not the same way I understand it.”

“You understand a king as someone who rules over people! I understand a king as someone who serves people.” He describes this back in Mark 10:42–44, where he says that the “rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those in high positions act as tyrants over them. But it is not so among you. On the contrary, whoever wants to become great among you will be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you will be a slave to all.” Jesus is a king who serves people.

“You understand a king as someone leads a violent rebellion with a huge army. I am a king who says in Matthew 5:44 'love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.’”

“You understand a king as someone on a golden thrown with a golden crown. I am a king going to my throne of a wooden cross and a crown of thorns.” Jesus’ kingship does not fit into worldly categories. That’s why he says in John 18:36 “36 “My kingdom is not of this world.”

By saying, “You say so,” Jesus avoids directly challenging Roman authority without denying who he is. And he answered in a way that was consistent to the way he taught, in that he put the question back on Pilot. Jesus always provokes thought and personal reflection.

Accusations are flying against Jesus, as it says in Mark 15:3, “the chief priests accused him of many things.” Yet Jesus shows his power by submitting to God’s will in silent submission.

What we are reading in Mark 15:1-20 is really a fulfillment of Jewish prophecy, specifically the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53. An interesting thing about Jesus being the Messiah is that, in order for Jesus to fulfill the prophecy of being the Messiah, he had to be someone who was despised and rejected. If Jesus was not rejected at his first coming, he could not have been the Messiah.

Take a look at Isaiah 53:3:

Isaiah 53:3 CSB

3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of suffering who knew what sickness was. He was like someone people turned away from; he was despised, and we didn’t value him.

Over and over it says in the verse: He was despised. He was rejected. He was a man of suffering. We turned away from him. He was despised. We didn’t value him. Over and over is a constant refrain of the Messiah as someone despised and rejected. Isaiah is writing to Israel, in that Israel would reject him, reject their Messiah.

Part of the power of Jesus in submitting to the Father’s will is submitting to a mission in his life that included rejection. It included that the very people the Lord came to, who he preached to, who he did ministry among, with healings and other miracles, all these amazing things, he will be rejected.

Speaking specifically about this interaction with Pontius Pilate, and the silent submission of the Son of God while his accusers hurled accusations at him, that was also a fulfillment of prophecy. Hundreds of years before Jesus, the prophet Isaiah wrote about the Suffering Servant in Isaiah 53:7:

Isaiah 53:7 CSB

7 He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth. Like a lamb led to the slaughter and like a sheep silent before her shearers, he did not open his mouth.

While the wolves are out to get him, he would be someone who was silent. Like a lamb led to the slaughter, he did not open his mouth. He silently submitted to the will of the Father.

This is another way his kingship was different. A typical king would assert their power and seek to defend their position. Jesus chose to remain silent. Jesus’ silence was a different kind of strength and power. There was a deep spiritual power in his life that was rooted in following the will of the Father above human authority.

The Holy Spirit in our life is a deep spiritual power that can root us in following the will of God above all else. How much are you submitted to his authority and power?

The Contrast of Power

You have this contrast of power. On the one hand, Jesus is up against human power.

Power of the Religious Authorities

You have the power of the religious authorities, the chief priests, the elders, the scribes, whose power is rooted in the religious structure of Jerusalem. Their power is rooted in their social status, and they attempt to use their power to manipulate and control the outcomes against Jesus.

Power of Politics and Manipulation

You have against him the political power and might of the Roman Empire in Pontius Pilot. His is a power that is susceptible to manipulation and public pressure.

Power of Mob Influence

You have against him the power of mob influence. You can see in this how a bad idea, how the tongue can inflame a situation, as the religious leaders use their influence to inflame the mob. This collective power of the mob is pushing against the government to persuade the decision of Pontius Pilot

Abuse of Human Power

We see the abuse of human power in the Roman soldiers, who use their power to tear apart a man. We’ll see that in a bit.

The Lack of Ethical or Moral Power

We see a lack of ethical or moral power in Pontius Pilot, who is unable or unwilling to uphold justice in the face of the demands of the crowd. It takes moral courage to uphold justice, and he lacks the courage to do so against the mob.

In all of these examples of human power, we see a power corrupted by sin and unable to uphold justice.

The Power of Silent Submission

In contrast to the human power, we see the power of Jesus in his silent submission. At any point, Jesus could have reigned down the powers of heaven upon that place. He said so in Matthew 26:53-54. Jesus is in the Garden, Peter had cut off the ear of a high priest’s servant. He tells Peter to put away his sword, because all who take up the sword will perish by the sword. And then he tells him,

Matthew 26:53–54 CSB

53 Or do you think that I cannot call on my Father, and he will provide me here and now with more than twelve legions of angels? 54 How, then, would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen this way?”

Do you notice something about verse 54? How important to Jesus is God’s Word? How important to Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promises to his people?

God’s promises are so powerful to the Lord that he is willing to stand in front of a mob and submit to the Father’s will, where he is willing to say to a criminal, “I’ll take your place.”

There was this criminal named Barabbas, a murderer. Pilate saw the powers coming against Jesus, and offered his release, but he was not able to stand against the pressure of the crowd. He should have. But the Jewish leaders stirred up the crowd against Jesus, and they yelled at Pilate, “Crucify him!” Death was supposed to come to Barabbas. Instead, death came to Jesus. The innocent took the penalty of the guilty.

That’s what happened to us. We were the guilty. We stood condemned before God. But the innocent one took on the crimes of the guilty. Jesus took our place. He did so with power, as his silence showed a powerful display of confidence and submitting to the Father’s will.

One morning in New York in 2009, we woke up to the news that a plane was floating in the Hudson River. A man named Captain Chesley Sullenberger, or Captain Sully, was flying US Airways Flight 1549, when it hit a flock of geese, disabling both engines of the plane. There were 155 people on board. Captain Sully made a decision to land the plane on the Hudson River, and save the lives of everyone on board, despite the risks involved.

Captain Sully had to submit to many things. He had to submit to the reality of the situation. The plane was not returning to LaGuardia Airport. He had to submit to his years of training, and trusting his judgment. He had to submit to the decision to land the plane on the Hudson. That could be a decision with fears and doubts. But he needed a confidence to submit. He had to submit to the wind conditions. He had no engine power to maneuver the plane, and had to use the winds. He had to submit to a water landing, which is highly dangerous due to the speed of the aircraft, the angle of descent, and the conditions of the water surface. In all of these ways, he had to submit and have confidence in things beyond his control.

Captain Sully submitted to reality to save the lives of people. In a greater way, Jesus submits to the reality of everything around him, the despising, the rejection, the human authorities, the mob, the criminal, all of it because of the reality of the situation, that you and I are lost in sin without him. He submits to the Father’s plan with confidence that God’s will is better than the circumstances he is facing.

In the same way, the Lord calls us to a life that submits to his plan, that says, “God, your plan is better than the circumstances I am facing. I trust you, and will follow you.”

Jesus shows his power in his submission to God’s will.

Last,

Jesus shows his power in his humility.

Pilate releases Barabbas to the crowd, and then afterward Jesus is flogged and handed over to be crucified.

Flogging refers to whipping or beating. Roman flogging was known to be brutal. They would often use a whip with strands that contained metal balls or sheep bones. The Roman flogging itself could be lethal.

The soldiers take him into the palace, into the governor’s residence. It says in Mark 15:17:

Mark 15:17 CSB

17 They dressed him in a purple robe, twisted together a crown of thorns, and put it on him.

They begin to mock him. They begin to spit at him. They hit him on the head with a stick, got down on their knees and mocked him.

Yet the Lord continued in silent submission to the Father’s will, and to submit, he had to be humble. Here is God in the flesh. The one who has the power to say, “Let there be light,” and there is light. The one who has the power to create the world out of nothing. The one who has the power to bring judgment, who can flood a whole sinful world. The one who has the power to bring down a legion of angels.

And yet, his power is shown in his humility. Paul makes this point in Philippians 2:5-8, where he tells us:

Philippians 2:5–8 CSB

5 Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus, 6 who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be exploited. 7 Instead he emptied himself by assuming the form of a servant, taking on the likeness of humanity. And when he had come as a man, 8 he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death— even to death on a cross.

The Son of God, God in the flesh, didn’t consider his position as God, his power as God, as something to be exploited. Instead, his power is shown in the fact that, despite his power as God, he humbled himself to mocking, he humbles himself to a purple robe and a crown of thorns.

By taking on that crown, he was taking on a curse. It says in Genesis 3:18 that the ground was cursed because of the sin of man.

Genesis 3:18 CSB

18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field.

Here is the curse of the sin of mankind, placed on the head of the Savior, who took on a curse so you can be free. He says, “I will humble myself. I will submit. I will take on his place.” He could have stopped all of the mocking. He could have stopped all of the rejection. He could have stopped it all at that moment.

Yet, he was humble enough to submit to God’s plan. In his humility, he was obedient to the point of death. He was obedient to mocking, to rejection, to death. It takes humility to be obedient.

Jesus takes our picture of power and turns it on its head. We are people obsessed with control. He was someone obsessed with the Father’s will. We are people filled with pride. He was someone who showed his power in humility. We make choices based on worldly worries. He made choices based on his confidence in the Father.

Power is not control and dominance. Power is being silent before God, confident in him, and confident to follow Jesus. The Christian life is a humble life before God. Humility is never weak. Humility is always strong, because you are not confident in your own plans, but in God’s plan for your life.

Maybe you need to be humble before God this morning. Maybe you need that power of humility in your own life. I know I do. I don’t know what you came in with, but I do know that Jesus can change your life because I know his power.

There is a beautiful hymn called, “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross.” It says,

When I survey the wondrous cross

On which the Prince of Glory died

My richest gain I count but loss

And pour contempt on all my pride

Forbid it Lord that I should boast

Save in the death of Christ my Lord

All the vain things that charm me most

I sacrifice them to His blood

See from His head His hands His feet

Sorrow and love flow mingled down

Did ever such love and sorrow meet

Or thorns compose so rich a crown

I love that last line. When ever did thorns compose so rich a crown? The Lord humbled himself to a curse, the true king took on a crown of thorns and a wooden cross.

God did that because he loves you. The Father sent his Son to the cross for you. The Lord showed his power in his humility and his submission to God’s will. The Lord seeks for you to be humble and submit to Jesus today.

Conclusion

Stop trying to have control. Submit to the control of the Lord in your life, and let him do his work in you.

Jesus shows his power in his submission to God’s will.

Jesus shows his power in his humility.

Prayer

Last Song

Doxology

Numbers 6:24–26 CSB

24 “May the Lord bless you and protect you; 25 may the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 may the Lord look with favor on you and give you peace.” ’

Jude 24–25 CSB

24 Now to him who is able to protect you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of his glory, without blemish and with great joy, 25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all time, now and forever. Amen.

You are dismissed. Have a great week in the Lord!